Well, not really. But I will miss the under-appreciated charm of Tim Pawlenty and the Midwestern civility of his campaign.

The former Minnesota governor is a genuinely nice guy, with the sort of unpretentious personality that usually connects well with Iowans. He threw a few elbows at his rivals, but he avoided slinging mud. Given enough time (and money), perhaps he could have gotten more Republicans here to give him a chance.

He didn’t have that time, and the money ran out. Finishing a distant third, behind Michele Bachmann and Ron Paul, in the Iowa Straw Poll is not the kind of result that encourages longevity. He dropped out of the race today.

Pawlenty wasn’t showy enough for the national media. He also wasn’t zealous enough for the evangelicals. Maybe if he hadn’t tried so hard to appeal to them, he might have had a better chance to be seen as a fresh alternative to Mitt Romney.

Romney stands to benefit from Pawlenty’s departure, either in Iowa or further down the trail. If the former Massachusetts governor engages fully in Iowa this fall, he may provide a home to some of Pawlenty’s supporters. Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who arrives in Iowa tonight, also has a chance to pick up supporters as well as some very talented and hardworking staff.

Iowa’s clearest role in the presidential campaign is to winnow the field. The GOP straw poll, which drew nearly 16,900 voters on Saturday, has a well-deserved reputation for making the first cut. That’s too much power for a non-election that charges $30 per vote, but candidates like Pawlenty have little choice but to accept the risk.

I’m sure I join many Iowans in wishing Pawlenty and his family well. I hope we’ll see him in Iowa again — but he can leave Ole and Lena at home.